1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image displaying processing method, a medium including an image displaying processing program stored thereon, and an image displaying processing apparatus, which are particularly advantageous when applied to a WWW browser for displaying visual information such as a character and an image described in an HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) file supplied from a WWW (World Wide Web) server or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
It has become very popular to read visual information such as a character and an image supplied from various WWW servers via the Internet, using a WWW (World Wide Web) browser running on a personal computer.
To read such visual information, a user operates a personal computer on which a WWW browser is running so as to request a desired WWW server to transmit a desired file in the HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) format (hereinafter referred to as an HTML file) and an image file associated with that HTML file via the Internet.
Upon reception of the request from the personal computer, the WWW server transmits the requested HTML file and the associated image file via the Internet to the personal computer which has issued the request.
If the personal computer receives the HTML file and the associated image file, the personal computer displays character information contained in the HTML file and associated image information on the WWW browser running on that personal computer.
HTML files have the capability of specifying layers in which respective images and/or characters are placed. Images and/or characters placed in respective layers are superimposed in a specified order into a single image, and the resultant superimposed image is displayed.
Some Web browsers have the capability of modifying information such as an image displayed thereon in response to an operation performed by a user of a personal computer. For example, a menu bar may be displayed in such a manner that it is overwritten in a higher layer above a layer in which a current page is displayed.
More specifically, when a WWW browser receives a dynamic HTML file, the WWW browser first displays only the index 70i of a menu bar 70 on the display screen 69, as shown in FIG. 5A. If the index 70i is clicked, the WWW browser expands the menu bar 70 displayed on an end of the display screen 69 and displays the whole of the menu bar 70 as shown in FIG. 5B.
A menu 71 including a character string xe2x80x9cMenu1 (URL1)xe2x80x9d and a menu 72 including a character string xe2x80x9cMenu2 (URL2) are displayed on the menu bar 70, wherein the menus 71 and 72 are linked to particular URL addresses URL1 and URL2, respectively. When the menu bar 70 is entirely displayed, if the character string of the menu 71 is clicked with a mouse, a linked page specified by URL1 is displayed, and the menu bar 70 returns to the minimum size in which only the index 70i is displayed as in FIG. 5A. In the case where the index 70i is clicked when the entire menu bar 70 is displayed, the menu bar 70 also returns to the minimum size as in FIG. 5A.
The dynamic HTML is widely used in the art to describe a menu bar or the like such that it can be dynamically moved.
However, when the menu bar 70 is expanded to its full size, an image or character (in a page being displayed) in an underlying layer is entirely hidden by the menu bar 70. This makes it impossible for a user to refer to the image or character in the underlying layer when the user clicks the menu 71 or 72 on the menu bar 70.
In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a technique of displaying an image and/or a character, such as a menu bar, in such a manner that another image and/or character in a lower layer can be seen through the menu bar.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image displaying processing method comprising: an information acquiring step for acquiring first visual information and second visual information having predetermined transparency from a predetermined server via a network; a first-layer displaying step for displaying a picture element of the first visual information acquired in the information acquiring step, in a first layer on a display screen; a second-layer displaying step for displaying a picture element of the second visual information acquired in the information acquiring step, in a second layer above the first layer on the display screen; and an image superimposing step for superimposing the picture elements of the first and second visual information to be displayed at an overlapping location in the first and second layers, respectively, in accordance with a predetermined superimposing method and displaying the resultant superimposed image on the display screen.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a medium including an image displaying processing program stored thereon, the program including: an information acquiring step for acquiring first visual information and second visual information having predetermined transparency from a predetermined server via a network; a first-layer displaying step for displaying a picture element of the first visual information acquired in the information acquiring step, in a first layer; a second-layer displaying step for displaying a picture element of the second visual information acquired in the information acquiring step, in a second layer above the first layer; and an image superimposing step for superimposing the picture elements of the first and second visual information to be displayed at an overlapping location in the first and second layers, respectively, in accordance with a predetermined superimposing method and displaying the resultant superimposed image on the display screen.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image displaying processing apparatus comprising: information acquiring means for acquiring first visual information and second visual information having predetermined transparency from a predetermined server via a network; first-layer displaying means for displaying a picture element of the first visual information acquired by the information acquiring means, in a first layer; second-layer displaying means for displaying a picture element of the second visual information acquired by the information acquiring means, in a second layer above the first layer; and image superimposing means for superimposing the picture elements of the first and second visual information to be displayed at an overlapping location in the first and second layers, respectively, in accordance with a predetermined superimposing method and displaying the resultant superimposed image.
In the image displaying processing method, the medium including the image displaying processing program stored thereon, and the image displaying processing apparatus according to the present invention, the first visual information and the second visual information with a particular degree of transparency are acquired from a desired server via a network, picture elements of the acquired first visual information are displayed in the first layer, and picture elements of the acquired second visual information are displayed in the second layer in such a manner that an image is synthesized by superimposing the picture elements of the first and second visual information at overlapping locations in the first and second layers, and the resultant image is displayed.